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Tour de Queens 2009

As usual, one of Transportation Alternatives "Tour de" rides brought out mega fun and happy faces to ride bikes. This year's 2nd Annual Tour de Queens event took riders on an 18 mile circuit of the most diverse borough on the planet, introducing newbies to St. Albans, Kew Gardens, Hollis, and many other neighborhoods. Once again, the Queens Museum of Art in Flushing-Corona Park, helped host the event and Tom Finkelpearl (its president) rode the entire route. There were many more riders this year, probably due not only to this year's beautiful weather but the fact that last year's high temp was 96!

Tom Finkelpearl:
[0:19] This is sort of like the Tour de France was an ad, a real estate ad for France. You should be on your bicycle and you should be riding around Queens. It's a beautiful place to ride and a beautiful way to get around the city is on bike.

Speaker:
[0:30] Bay way, buddy. Big day, beautiful day in Queens.

Speaker:
[0:33] Is this Sesame Street or something?
[laughter]

Speakers:
[0:35] A - B - C.

Speaker:
[0:36] A.

Speaker e>
[0:36] B.

Speaker:
[0:37] C.

Speaker:
[0:38] D.

Speaker:
[0:38] E.

Speakers in unison:
[0:39] Tour de Queens!

Speaker:
[0:41] Good job.

Speaker:
[0:43] I hope today we have a good turn out. The weather's good and maybe not as hot as last year.

Speakers shouting:
[celebratory shout] [0:48]

Speaker:
[0:49] This is fun.

Speaker:
[0:50] Yeah.

Speaker:
[0:50] Watch... [overlapping speech]

Speaker:
[0:51] Did you talk to them?

Speaker:
[0:52] This is the best part.

Speaker:
[0:53] Keep together.

Speaker:
[indecipherable 0:54] [0:54] Laguardia Community College, one of the sponsors of the event. And so here we are, right here, on a beautiful day.

Speaker:
[1:01] Ready to go!
[musical interlude]

[bike bells] [1:03]

Eddie Hernandez:
[1:32] I'm extremely proud of the Queen's Committee and all the stuff we're doing here in Queens. I'm really thankful to Transportation Alternatives for everything in helping us accomplish.

Speaker:
[1:39] Transportation Alternatives here to promote riding, getting more people to ride in Queens. Getting people their feet wet--or their pedals wet and having them ride through their borough.

Speaker:
[1:51] I'm having a great ride!

Speaker:
[1:53] Here is a wonderful ride. I don't think I'll be able to sit down after I get off this bike.

Speaker:
[1:58] The day's amazing. What a beautiful day!

Speaker:
[2:00] And you see all the different people. There's babies. And a dog.

Speaker:
[2:04] Yeah, there's a dog.

Speaker:
[2:05] Did you see the dog?

Speaker:
[2:06] Boy, you're big.

Speaker:
[laughs] [2:07]
[dog panting]

Speaker:
[2:09] How heavy is that dog?

Speaker:
[2:10] Around 85, 90 pounds.

Speaker:
[2:12] Are you feeling that?

Speaker:
[2:13] Yes.

Speaker:
[2:14] We live in Astoria. We'd go from where we live in Astoria to Shay Stadium when they had the dog day. We don't have a car. That's how we got out there.

Speaker:
[3:10] I love it! This is awesome. Never been to Queens before, this is my first time. Thank you, thank you, thank you. But it's...I'm enjoying it.
[whistle]

[music] [3:16]

Speaker:
[3:22] Hey!
[women shouting]

[honking horn] [3:25]

[people shouting] [3:26]

[honking horn] [3:26]

[bike bells] [3:27]

[people shouting] [3:27]

[clapping] [3:28]

Speaker:
[3:39] Everyone should do this ride next year. We should get 5, 000 people out here.
[music]

Speaker:
[3:47] Fantastic! Had a wonderful time! [laughs]
[music]

Eddie Hernandez:
[3:54] Those are actually better than like anything you'll see in Cape Canaveral or Houston, or anything like that. Those actually go to like, you know...to other planets...
[audio ends]

[0:00]

Clarence Eckerson, Jr. has been making fantastical transportation media in NYC since the late 1990s. He's never had a driver's license and never will.

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